HOLLAND PATENT, NY — Oneida County Rural Telephone announced the on-time completion of construction of more than 140 miles of new fiber-optic lines as part of the New NY Broadband Program, an initiative to bring broadband access to all residents of New York State. The construction of these lines will allow Oneida County Rural Telephone to offer high-speed broadband Internet service to more than 600 homes in unserved and underserved rural areas in the Mohawk Valley region.

This project was supported by $3.29 million in State funding and $821,000 in private matching funding from Oneida County Rural Telephone for a total broadband investment of more than $4.1 million. An additional $1.9 million invested by Oneida County Rural Telephone allowed the company to reach an additional 1,000 homes within its existing service area, including the towns of Steuben, Remsen, Floyd, Boonville and parts of Westernville.

In an effort to raise awareness locally, Oneida County Rural Telephone worked with a group of students from Holland Patent Central School, home of the Golden Knights, to name its now more widely available fiber Internet service. With the help of the school’s sixth-grade social studies classes, the company is proud to officially introduce Knight Speed. “This grant has enabled us to extend our network to the most rural areas of our territory that would have otherwise been cost prohibitive,” said Jim McCarthy, president of Oneida County Rural Telephone Company. “Thanks to New York State’s support, this project has benefited not only our current customers but our community as a whole.”